ROCKVILLE, Maryland—Executives from Choice Hotels International said they are considering entry into Cuba on a near-term basis, and they don’t see significant financial implications in entering the country.

“We think there is an opportunity for us to participate (in Cuba) on a much near-term basis when (the) Helms-Burton law changes and you can bring down partners to help build hotels,” said President and CEO Steve Joyce during the company’s fourth-quarter and year-end earnings conference call Thursday. “We are not planning on investing on any capital in Cuba.”

He said company leaders think an “Ascend-like arrangement”—Ascend is Choice’s soft brand—with a number of hotels makes sense in the country. He said Choice executives have had productive conversations with government officials on the subject, adding that the company is a significant supporter of efforts to open up Cuba because Choice customers want to go there in droves.

“We think it’s a great opportunity not only for us, but for the island and the Cuban people and everything else,” Joyce said. “We actually are hoping we’re going to be there playing relatively short-term. The financial implications for them are not significant, and we’re not putting money into it.”

After concluding a study that showed 43% of millennials want their first benefits as soon as they sign up, Choice redesigned the loyalty program to allow travelers to get perks and rewards faster and more frequently than ever before, Joyce said. Loyalty points also never expire.

Domestic system-wide RevPAR was up 4.3% during the fourth quarter, as occupancy increased 60 basis points and ADR increased 3.2% from the previous year, according to a news release announcing the company’s earnings.

1 Comment

Mahaley
April 21, 2018 2:10 AM

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